History of Grumman Tracker S2F-1
Navy Bureau Number 136427
"The Iron Lady"
Grumman Tracker S2F-1, converted to US-2B, 136427,
"The Iron Lady",
was owned by me from
2000-2004 doing business as (dba)
The Tracker Air Group.
Unfortunately, I was not making the progress in getting the
aircraft back in the air as I had originally hoped when I purchased it from the Museum of
Wings and Things in 2000. Therefore, I thought it in the best interest of
the aircraft to sell it to someone who could make it airworthy and fly it again. This happened, and in September of 2004, 136427 flew to
her new home in Arlington, Washington.
136427 "Iron Lady" Video - Anderson, IN
This is the only video that I am aware of that demonstrates both the unfolding
and folding of the wings of a Tracker. Also, at the end of the unfold
sequence, crew members are looking into the wing fold mechanism to make sure the
locking pins have not prematurely engaged. Also note that when holding the
wings back up half way through the sequence, the pilot opens the weapons' bay, which
robs the wing fold of pressure and momentarily stops it. Normal hydraulic
pressure was 1,500 psi while the wing fold used 3,000 psi.
Below is a photographic history of 136427 while in
Anderson, IN and additional I have been able to find before she arrived at Anderson
Darlington Airport in 1996.
This is what 136427 looked like at her last duty
station at NAS Lakehurst from 1973 to 1978. Photo courtesy of Jim Bowen,
Plane Captain for 136427.
136427 preparing to start at Pope AFB,
NC. Photo courtesy of Jim Bowen, Plane Captain for 136427.
136427 with another US-2B at Lakehurst. Photo
courtesy of Jim Bowen, Plane Captain for 136427.
This photo was taken by Gerard Helmer on October 11,
1986, at The Davis-Monthan Storage Area. Photo courtesy and with permission
of Gerard Helmer.
Bureau Number
136427 in 1995 at AMARC in Tucson, AZ. Note the NAEC/Lakehurst tail
markings.
This is how Bureau
Number 136427 looked from 1978, when she entered the storage and disposal
yard at Davis-Monthan AFB, just east of Tuscan, AZ, until she was
purchased and removed in 1995 by Airplane Sales International Corp. 136427
was accepted by the US Navy on December 21, 1955, as an S2F-1 Tracker from The Grumman Aircraft Company.
She served with various
commands until 1978, when she was flown to Davis-Monthan and placed in
storage. Aircraft that go to the Disposal Center are cocooned, as
shown above, to protect the aircraft from the elements.
Although the
thousands of aircraft at the Storage Yard may have no further use to the
US military, they are put in storage and not destroyed immediately for
three main reasons. They can be a source of spare parts for the same
type of aircraft that is still in service with the US or foreign nations, they
may need to be put back in service if a national emergency results in the
need for that type aircraft, or they can eventually be sold to foreign
nations, other government agencies, or private individuals. Trackers
have been sold to the California Dept. of Forestry to be used as fire bombers.
They have also been sold to private companies, which then make the aircraft airworthy
and resell them to private individuals and organizations, as was the case for
"The Iron
Lady".
136427 at Santa Monica Airport on May 1, 1996.
Rob Hanson Photo.
Note that the NAEC/Lakehurst tail markings have
been replaced by Airplane Sales International when they prepped the Tracker
for sale. Rob Hanson Photo.
Rob Hanson Photo.
More of 136427 at Santa Monica Airport on May 1,
1996, with me standing in the aircraft. The next day we
would leave for Anderson, IN. Rob Hanson Photo.
Rob Hanson Photo.
I am standing on the left with my late cousin Carl Dominik
from Victorville, CA. The sun is getting ready to set. Rob
Hanson Photo.
136427 at a fuel stop in Albuquerque, NM on May
2, 1996. David Jackson Photo.
136427 at a fuel stop in Albuquerque, NM on May
2, 1996. David Jackson Photo.
On April 29, 1996, Bureau Number
136427, now registered as civilian aircraft N8112A, was purchased by The
Museum of Wings & Things in Santa Monica, CA.
From 1996 until July 1999, 136427 was able to fly out to the air shows
listed below to represent Naval Aviation history to the spectators at these
events. The Aircraft was then sold to
David Jackson dba as The Tracker Air Group,
who then sold her to Abbatare of Arlington, WA in 2004.
Anderson, IN: Photos of the Iron Lady
for the brief period she was at Anderson. Photos are from 1996-1999.
Some of the photos below are courtesy of Brian
Gwaltney.
Anderson Runway 18 in 1998. Courtesy of Brian
Gwaltney.
Below is the Iron Lady at Arlington, WA in May of
2012: In 2009 Abbatare sold "The Iron Lady"
to Air Station, Inc., which is apparently dba The Arlington Naval Air Museum from
the name painted on the aircraft. At one time the organization had a web site
but that is no longer in existence. The receptionist at the airport was
unaware the museum even existed and was under the impression that Abbatare was
still the owner. In any event, for the past eight years "The Iron Lady" sat
outside, compared to the previous eight years in Anderson when she was in a hangar. I
was able to note the degradation in the paint from the last time I saw her.
I hope this all works out for her.
There are several changes since I owned her.
Both the searchlight and "football" with the ECM Antenna have been added.
Sometime since 2010, the number two engine has been removed. I could see
the prop through the windows in the building behind The Iron Lady, which is
owned by Abbatare.
The interior is in the US-2B configuration
which provides considerably more room for the crew members. From
the military history shown below,
"The Iron Lady"
was converted in 1966 to a US-2B, which removed the anti-submarine warfare
equipment. The interior electronic gear was replaced with seating for five passengers, making
her into a utility aircraft.
“Iron Lady” History
Navy Bureau # 136427
Year built: December 1955
FAA Registry N8112A, after 1995
Military and civilian record of
“The Iron Lady”
Accepted 21 Dec
1955 as an S2F-1 (To learn more about size, performance, weapons, and mission
of the S2F-1 go to Tracker Basics)
VS-30 Naval Air Station Norfolk, VA
20 Jan 1956
Aboard Wasp (CVS-18)
09 Aug 1957
VS-30 Naval Air Station Norfolk, VA
28 Feb 1958
Naval Air Reserve Training, Naval Air
Station Willow Grove, PA 21 Aug 1959
VS-935 Naval Air Station Willow Grove,
PA 06 Oct 1961
Naval Air Reserve Training, Naval Air
Station Willow Grove, PA 02 Jul 1962
Naval Air Station Willow Grove, PA
01 Jul 1965
Converted to US-2B @ NAS Pensacola, FL
29 Mar 1966
Naval Air Station Norfolk, VA
20 Jun 1966
Naval Air Facility Washington, Andrews
Air Force Base, MD 27 Jul 1971
Naval Air Station Lakehurst, NJ
14 May 1973
NAEC Naval Air Station Lakehurst, NJ
06 Jul 1977
MASDC Davis Monthan Air Force Base Tucson,
AZ 21 Jul 1978
Stricken
18 Apr 1982
136427 was purchased by Airplane Sales International Corp. in Beverly Hills, CA,
on October 13, 1988. The
aircraft was sold by the US
Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, FL. The sale was not filed with the
FAA until March 28, 1995, and then recorded by the FAA on April 19, 1995.
The best I
can tell is that on or about May 25, 1995, it was then flown out of Davis-Monthan
AFB. In between that time, it apparently was moved on May 18, 1989, to Dross
Metals, now DMI Aviation, which is a scrapper to the west of Davis-Monthan and put in storage
along with eight other Trackers. For the nine Trackers to fly out
of Tucson, they would have had to be towed back to Davis-Monthan for their
"Freedom (from the scrapper) Flights" to Santa Monica, CA for restoration and
selling. Thank you to Steve Williams for providing much of this
information.
Purchased by The Museum of Wings &
Things 29 Apr 1996
Purchased by David Jackson dba The Tracker Air Group
25 Jul 2000
Purchased by Abbatare 4 Jun 2004
Purchased by The Air Station Museum 2009.
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